100 MPH Mass. Police Pursuit Ends in Crash

BARNSTABLE, Mass. — A police pursuit from Yarmouth to Hyannis that ended with a crash early yesterday morning reached speeds of up to 100 miles per hour, according to a report filed by a patrolman involved in the chase.

Yarmouth police Officer Christopher Marino first spotted the 2001 Honda Accord on Buck Island Road at approximately 1:15 a.m., drifting in and out of its lane, Marino wrote in the report.

Marino followed the car onto Higgins Crowell Road, turning on his emergency lights to signal the driver to stop, he wrote.

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The car briefly appeared to slow down, he said, but then accelerated and pulled away.

With his sirens blaring, Marino chased the car onto Route 28, where it traveled at about 80 miles per hour, he wrote.

The driver continued to speed up, reaching an estimated 90 to 100 miles per hour as it entered the town of Barnstable, according to Marino.

Staying over 90, the car flew through the Airport Rotary. By this time, two more cruisers had joined the pursuit, according to a report from Patrol Officer Mary Gibney, the driver of one of the other police vehicles.

As the caravan of cars approached Independence Drive on Route 132, Marino wrote that he could see another car starting to switch lanes up ahead. The driver of the Honda then apparently tried to pass the vehicle, but failed, hitting it on the rear driver’s side. The Honda spun around as the second car skidded through the right lane, Marino wrote.

Jumping out of his cruiser, Marino yelled for the driver of the Honda, later identified as Matthew Clark, 24, of West Yarmouth, to get out of the car.

When he asked Clark what he was doing, he apparently told the police officer he was drunk.

Clark was taken to Cape Cod Hospital and treated for a cut on his head, according to the report. While there, he also consented to a blood test.

The three people in the vehicle he hit were also taken to Cape Cod Hospital. The injuries to the driver of the car were considered “major,” according to the police report. He was in stable condition at the hospital this afternoon, spokeswoman Robin Lord said.

One passenger received a “severe laceration” and the other an apparently minor injury. Both were treated at the hospital and released, Lord said.

This morning, Clark pleaded not guilty to charges including an alleged second offense of operating under the influence at his arraignment in Barnstable District Court.

He was released on his own recognizance and a pretrial conference was scheduled for Feb. 11.

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